Donna Krache, Allison Krache Giddens and Janice McDonald help John Cole check-in at the start of the Dave Krache Foundation Softball Tournament at Adams Park in Kennesaw on June 22. Allison Krache Giddens established the Dave Krache Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps needy children play sports by paying the fees at local parks. Staff/Todd Hull

The Dave Krache Foundation helps kids plays the sports they love. The foundation raises money through activities such as softball tournaments and pays recreational league fees for local children whose parents are suffering financial hardships.

Allison Krache Giddens founded the nonprofit organization in 2012 in honor of her father, who died unexpectedly in June 2009.

“After the dust settled after my father’s death, my mom and I tried to figure out how to honor somebody’s life for what he stood for, without being cliché and without doing what everybody else was doing and without doing something that wasn’t needed,” Giddens said.

“(Dave Krache) was the kind of guy who helped those who were less fortunate,” she said.

“I kept seeing kids with cleats with holes in them and gloves that were too small. A kid should never have to be told that they can’t play the sport they love because Mom and Dad can’t afford it.”

Giddens said her father always gave back to the community and loved sports.

“(The foundation) evolved into something he would support — helping those who need the help, especially the kids and making sure they don’t have to be told that financially (their sport) is not a priority for Mom and Dad right now.”

The foundation finds children in need through contacts on different park boards such as Oregon Park, Sandy Plains, Adams Park and Lost Mountain Park.

“This family really can’t justify the $150 for their little girl to play softball. The foundation will write a check directly to the park and credit that child’s account,” said Giddens, who volunteers at several ball parks.

The foundation works behind the scenes. “We’re big on the privacy side of things because we know people aren’t always comfortable coming to us. The little girl gets to play and the mom and dad aren’t stressed,” said Giddens, a Marietta resident since she was 7 years old.

Giddens works at a Precision Machine Shop in Kennesaw.

The foundation fills a unique niche in the community.

“You’re helping a kid who might one day be the next Major League baseball player who can say, ‘I’m from Kennesaw’ or might be that one kid you’re getting off the streets that might be headed down the wrong path,” Giddens said.

In return, the foundation asks a recipient of funds to help someone else in the future. “That doesn’t necessarily mean through money but through donation of time. We’re just encouraging people to keep in mind to help those less fortunate than themselves at any point in time,” Giddens said.

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